WORKING GENIUS

Hi fellow readers, Taylor here again to grace your week with a little knowledge and probably a much-needed break!  

I wonder if you can relate with me on something…have you ever run into a project that you just didn’t know how to start or found yourself needing a little push to get your creative juices flowing? Do you wish you knew who on your team was naturally gifted at doing all these things (and much more) at the drop of a hat? 

This was something we struggled with here at Accounting Therapy early on. As a leader in our organization, one of my primary goals has always been to foster an environment where everyone can thrive by doing what they love and excel at. A few years ago, we found a little trick that has since become a game-changer for us when it comes to achieving just that. I’d like to introduce you to the revolutionary tool developed by renowned author and business consultant, Patrick Lencioni, [drum roll, please] The Working Genius Assessment! I must admit that we were skeptical at first... you’re telling me that a personality test is going to really change the way we do things and utilize our team? Well, we took the blind leap of faith, so you don’t have to. 

So, What’s It All About? 

The Working Genius Assessment isn’t just your typical personality test that every single employer seems to be handing out like candy these days. It’s not going to examine your birth chart or tell you the exact day you’re going to get that promotion, it’s even better! Instead, it’s a deep dive into the type of work activities that energize you, enable you to thrive, and ultimately make you feel fulfilled in a work environment. It’s based on the premise that everyone possesses two types of “working genius,” two types of “working competency,” and two types of “working frustration.” These six categories represent different aspects of work life, from ideation to implementation, and can be found in any industry. The genius types are: 

• Wonder: The natural gift of pondering the possibility of greater potential, improvements, and opportunities in any given situation. 
• Invention: The natural gift of creating original and novel ideas and solutions to problems. 
• Discernment: The natural gift of intuitively and instinctively evaluating ideas and decisions. 
• Galvanizing: The natural gift of rallying, inspiring, and organizing others to take action and/or get behind an idea. 
• Enablement: The natural gift of providing encouragement and assistance for an idea or project. 
• Tenacity: The natural gift of ensuring the idea, solution, or work gets completed and that desired results are achieved.
  

Patrick likes to paint a picture using a coffee cup analogy to drive the concept home. So, imagine you pour your piping hot coffee into your favorite Yeti mug or even your fancy, electric Ember mug (IYKYK), it’s going to stay warm for quite a long time. This mug is essentially your working genius types. This is the type of work that is going to keep you motivated and bring you happiness; these are the things that you could work on all day and still feel energized when you call it quits. Now, imagine your working competency as just your regular old mug. That coffee is going to be warm initially but slowly start to cool down until it’s no longer hot, or even warm, in fact, it’s two hours after you poured the thing and it’s cold. This regular coffee cup is equivalent to your working competencies. These are the things you CAN do and might even do well, but they don’t fill your cup (pun intended) and eventually you will burn out and ultimately, you don’t feel fulfilled doing these things. And finally, we come to your final cup of coffee, that’s in a paper Dixie cup. It starts out hot but then, within minutes, it’s wilted the sides and is seeping through the bottom of the cup... coffee no more. This cup is your working frustrations. This type of work does not bring you joy or energy and often drains your cup, literally and figuratively! Cue the burn out. 

So, how do we implement Working Genuis into our world? 

We continuously use the assessment in two different ways. First, each new hire is required to take the assessment as part of their initial onboarding (psst, we may or may not ask questions in our interview process to get a feel for where they might fit into the matrix). And second, our entire team (including leadership) re-takes the assessment once a year. This allows us to see if and how our team is changing and growing through the years. It’s very possible that your working geniuses were wonder and invention one year but are now wonder and galvanizing. We grow as individuals, so it only makes sense that our passions do as well. For example, my current working geniuses are enablement and invention, but from time to time, they also have been tenacity and enablement. 

With consistent retesting and ongoing discussion about what fills people’s cups, we ensure that no one team member is spending a disproportionate amount of time on tasks that may be draining them, while we are missing the mark on plugging them into opportunities in which they can truly shine and feel fulfilled in the process! 

Time to Use Our New Found Knowledge! 

Armed with this new knowledge, we created what we like to call our “team cheat sheet.” This document, accessible to everyone, outlines each team member’s geniuses and competencies. It has become an invaluable resource for project planning, task delegation, and even resolving potential workplace conflicts that arise from mismatched work styles. 

One of the most significant changes we made was to tailor roles and responsibilities to better align with each team member’s geniuses. This wasn’t about pigeonholing people into narrow roles but rather ensuring that everyone had the opportunity to engage in work that energizes and fulfills them. 

What Has Changed Since? 

The effects of implementing The Working Genius Assessment have been great! Here are a few examples of what we have noticed throughout the years of using this magical little tool: 

• Increased Job Satisfaction: Team members are feeling more engaged and satisfied with the type of work they are assigned to. There's a renewed sense of purpose and excitement about what they’re doing and why it matters. 
• Enhanced Productivity: Projects are not only completed more efficiently but also with a higher level of creativity and innovation. When people do what they're naturally good at, they bring their best selves to the table and feel rewarded by the outcome. 
• Improved Team Dynamics: Understanding each other's geniuses has fostered a culture of respect and appreciation for the diverse talents within our team. Instead of just thinking “this person isn’t good at this” we can recognize that the type of work just isn’t their working genius and then reassign it to someone who does have that skill as their genius. 
• Improved Self-Awareness and Vulnerability: Utilizing the Working Genius language in our communications with each other allows room for people to say, “I’m not good at this particular thing, but I’m actually excellent at this other thing” and for that to not be perceived as a negative or weakness.
  

So, loyal readers, is this something you can put to use in your company? What might be the outcomes? I bet you may already have an idea of where some team members fall or where you may need to make a change. All I can say is we have found the utilization of this assessment to be super useful to everyone on our team and have heard similar stories from peers that utilize it as well. We challenge you to see if this is something that could improve your business dynamic and team growth. And of course, we would love to hear what your geniuses are...leave us a comment to let us know! 

Until next time fellow geniuses!!